O Jehovah, my heart is not proud, nor are my eyes haughty;
Nor do I go about in things too great
or too wondrous for me.
— Psalm 131:1

Not only do we no longer consider ourselves so high, but we no longer look for great things in which to participate. Suppose the Lord is moving dramatically in another country. This is a great matter, much greater than our local situation. If we are young in the Lord then once we hear about it we will immediately respond, “I am ready to go! (more…)

O Jehovah, my heart is not proud, nor are my eyes haughty;
Nor do I go about in things too great
or too wondrous for me.
— Psalm 131:1

When the Lord comes to work on us and shines His light upon us, then our eyes look down. We no longer think that we are so important. We no longer think of ourselves as a vine tree, or as a mighty man with arrows, or as a great servant of the Lord, as in Psalm 128. (more…)

O Jehovah, my heart is not proud, nor are my eyes haughty;
Nor do I go about in things too great
or too wondrous for me.
— Psalm 131:1

When saints are young in the church life they often think that they are important. Because they are so zealous to give themselves to the Lord, they feel that they are the hope for the church’s future. (more…)

O Jehovah, my heart is not proud, nor are my eyes haughty;
Nor do I go about in things too great
or too wondrous for me.
— Psalm 131:1

In Psalm 128, the last psalm from the stage of enjoyment, we were likened to a vine tree and an olive tree. But then, in Psalm 129, we went through some plowing. We experienced affliction in our environment. The Lord cut us deeply so that life could grow even more. (more…)

O Jehovah, my heart is not proud, nor are my eyes haughty;
Nor do I go about in things too great
or too wondrous for me.
— Psalm 131:1

When we come to this experience we have gained some maturity. In Psalm 128, the last psalm from the stage of enjoyment, we were likened to a vine tree and an olive tree. (more…)

O Jehovah, my heart is not proud, nor are my eyes haughty;
Nor do I go about in things too great
or too wondrous for me. (more…)

Through his experience, Joshua learned many lessons. First, he encountered and defeated Amalek, which became a continual reminder to him to be watchful. Second, he witnessed Jethro’s attempt to help Moses, and third, he witnessed God’s response that they have no other gods. (more…)

If you want to be a Joshua, be prepared, be trained, and be educated by God. Tell the Lord, “Everything Joshua learned I would also like to learn. I would like to learn not to trust anything from the world. I would like to only care for Christ and the enjoyment in Christ. (more…)

Now Moses used to take the tent and pitch it outside the camp, a good distance from the camp, and he called it the tent of meeting. And everyone who sought the Lord would go out to the tent of meeting, which was outside the camp….Thus the Lord used to speak to Moses face to face, just as a man speaks to his friend. When Moses returned to the camp, his servant Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man, would not depart from the tent.
— Exodus 33:7,11

Before the building of the tabernacle described by God on the mountain, Moses pitched a tent outside the camp. He would go there to meet face-to-face with God and then return to camp. Joshua, however, was made keeper of this tent of meeting and remained there (Exo. 33:7–11). (more…)

Now when Joshua heard the sound of the people as they shouted, he said to Moses, “There is a sound of war in the camp.”
But he said,
“It is not the sound of the cry of triumph,
Nor is it the sound of the cry of defeat;
But the sound of singing I hear.”
— Exodus 32:17-18

God finished His instruction to Moses and gave him the two tablets engraved by His hand (Exo. 31:18). I believe Moses walked slowly down the mountain, for he was very old. Perhaps Joshua was helping him. Remember, Joshua had just seen something even Aaron had never seen. He must have been elated. He had seen the pattern of the tabernacle, the Lord’s testimony, and the priesthood. (more…)

The church life is a place of mutual care. We serve others and others serve us. If we preach the gospel and care for others or go to someone’s home for dinner and read the Bible together, we are in the church life. We need to be fully in the church life if the Lord is to have His testimony. (more…)

When I was young, I felt the church life was for old people, so I only went to young people’s meetings. Then the Lord revealed to me that these old people were my brothers. (more…)

We must learn to advance as God leads us. We should never envy another’s success, and never despise the work of the Spirit. If we look at the success of a larger group, that is envy. Furthermore, we should not say, “We have it, and nobody else does.” That is pride. We should have a humble spirit and seek to continue advancing. (more…)

“Take Aaron your brother, and his sons with him, from among the children of Israel, that he may minister to Me as priest, Aaron and Aaron’s sons: Nadab, Abihu, Elemazar, and Ithamar.”
— Exodus 28:1

God also initiated the service of the priesthood at this time. Besides the tabernacle, Moses was to prepare the priesthood. With us also, the Lord desires both a testimony and a priesthood to maintain that testimony. (more…)

“Let them construct a sanctuary for Me, that I may dwell among them. According to all that I am going to show you, as the pattern of the tabernacle and the pattern of all its furniture, just so you shall construct it.”
— Exodus 25:8-9

God told Moses to make Him a sanctuary according to the pattern He revealed to him on the mountain (Exo. 25:9). It was no longer a matter of feasting. God desired something further. He wanted the children of Israel to build a sanctuary, a tabernacle, with every detail matching the pattern He unveiled upon the mountain. (more…)

So Moses arose with Joshua his servant, and Moses went up to the mountain of God.
— Exodus 24:13

“Let them construct a sanctuary for Me, that I may dwell among them.”
— Exodus 25:8

This sanctuary, the tabernacle Israel was to build as God’s dwelling place, would be His testimony among the nations.

We like feasting; the Lord likes being testified. The Lord satisfies us by becoming our feast; we satisfy Him by becoming His testimony. (more…)

Then Moses went up with Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, and they saw the God of Israel; and under His feet there appeared to be a pavement of sapphire, as clear as the sky itself. Yet He did not stretch out His hand against the nobles of the sons of Israel; and they saw God, and they ate and drank.

Now the Lord said to Moses, “Come up to Me on the mountain and remain there, and I will give you the stone tablets with the law and the commandment which I have written for their instruction.”

So Moses arose with Joshua his servant, and Moses went up to the mountain of God.

— Exodus 24:9-13

During this feast, God said to Moses, “Come up to Me on the mountain and be there; and I will give you tablets of stone (Exo. 24:12–13). So Moses took Joshua, and together they went further up the mountain to meet with God. (more…)

Then Moses went up with Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, and they saw the God of Israel; and under His feet there appeared to be a pavement of sapphire, as clear as the sky itself. Yet He did not stretch out His hand against the nobles of the sons of Israel; and they saw God, and they ate and drank.

— Exodus 24:9-13

In Exodus 24:9–13, Aaron, his sons, and the seventy elders of Israel ascended the mountain with Moses. There, they saw God and had a marvelous experience of eating and drinking in the presence of God. When we come to the point we only care for Christ, we are able to see God and eat and drink in His presence. (more…)

Our Passover, Christ, also has been sacrificed. So then let us akeep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and evil, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.
— First Corinthians 5:7b-8

The second thing the Lord said in His reaction to Moses’ taking Jethro’s advice was, “Three times you shall keep a feast to Me in the year” (Exo. 23:14). God’s solution to disagreements among His people was very different from Jethro’s. His solution was to feast together. (more…)

“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. You shall have no other gods before Me.”
— Exodus 20:2–3

Moses received and followed Jethro’s advice to organize a system of judges in Israel. Opening to or depending upon a source other than God violates the principle that the Lord alone is God. Once Moses acted on this idea, his new way became his god. (more…)

“I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage. You shall have no other gods before Me.”
— Exodus 20:2–3

In response to Moses’ taking the advice of Jethro in organizing the people, God spoke to Moses about two things: first, only He is God, and second, three times a year Israel was to hold a feast unto Him. (more…)

When I was young, I felt God had given Moses a marvelous father-in-law. His suggestion to teach people the statutes and laws and organize them into various levels so that the pressure was off Moses seemed wise. Then one day I read a statement made by Watchman Nee that we need to consider the difference between God’s way and Jethro’s way. (more…)

Moses was taking care of the children of Israel, which was a tremendous task. His father-in-law Jethro arrived, bringing with him Moses’ wife and sons (Exo. 18:5). I believe that Jethro was a godly person, for he rejoiced that God had brought the children of Israel out of bondage in Egypt (vv. 9–10). However, he was bothered by what he saw in the Israelite camp. (more…)

“Write this for a memorial in the book and recount it in the hearing of Joshua.”
— Exodus 17:14

Joshua was totally committed to the Lord and to His interest. Because of this, he was chosen to fight against Amalek. In the process, he learned it was Moses’ prayer, representing the interceding Christ, that was responsible for the victory. Our actions are needed, but apart from the intercession of Christ they are in vain. It is Christ who wins each victory. (more…)

Now Boaz went up to the gate and sat down there, and behold, the kinsman of whom Boaz spoke was passing by, so he said, “Turn aside, friend, sit down here.” And he turned aside and sat down.
— Ruth 4:1

I hope we are all impressed with this matter of Christ as our near relative and the natural man, who is inclined to religion, as another even closer relative. Perhaps if we were to see these two—Boaz and the closer kinsman—they might appear nearly identical. (more…)

Then Naomi took the child and laid him in her lap, and became his nurse.

The neighbor women gave him a name, saying, “A son has been born to Naomi!” So they named him Obed. He is the father of Jesse, the father of David.
— Ruth 4:16-17

Naomi took the child, laid him on her bosom, and became his nurse. Then something interesting happened. It seems it was the neighbors who came into the house who gave this child his name. They named him Obed, which means serving or worshipping. (more…)